Nelly Furtado on Pacquiao, Pinoy roots and swagger

Grammy winner Nelly Furtado half-jokingly said that if she could collaborate with a Filipino artist, it would have to be with Manny Pacquiao.

“But I think I would have to fall in line to get the privilege. It’s a long line and a long list, right?” she asked during a press conference yesterday at EDSA Shangri-la Hotel.

The Canadian singer-songwriter, who is performing tonight at the Smart Araneta Coliseum with the rap rock group favorite Gym Class Heroes, also said she would be performing all her hits.

“It’s going to be a fun show,” she promised.
 
Inspirational and musically aggressive

She is also set to unveil the new songs from her fifth album “Spirit Indestructible,” which will be released next month.
 
Nelly describes it as a “friendly punch in the face” as the album, which took three years to make, is both inspirational and musically aggressive.
 
“My brand new album is super fun, super powerful album with lots of pops songs in every genre, from hip-hop world beats to reggae, and it’s my favorite project because I feel so thrilled to share with my fans because lots of my songs are inspiring. The album is kind of spiritual and inspiring,” she said in an e-mail interview with Yahoo! OMG! Philippines.
 
Used to do freestyle rapping

Nelly shared that her album was inspired by her “experiences and inspiring people” she met in the last few years.
 
Her first single off the album, “Big Hoops,” talks about R&B and hip-hop, her first musical loves.
 
She said that she used to do freestyle rapping in the clubs when she was a teenager.
 
“I listen to R&B all the time. My room is full of posters of my favorite stars. My microphone always used to feel like my sword and gave me great confidence. I feel like confidence and swagger has to be bigger and better when you’re on the microphone,” she said.
 
Being a mom and a musician

But motherhood changed her music, Nelly confessed during yesterday’s press conference.
 
“I became more serious about my career as a professional, you know, musician, and started taking that more seriously because I felt more like an adult and more, obviously, you’ll have to be more responsible and set an example for your children,” she said.
 
“It’s enhanced my life in a great way, and now I’m very conscientious of everything I do. It’s been fun balancing the two things, motherhood and being a musician.”
 
Her daughter Nevis, turns nine in September, and is quarter-Filipina, Nelly revealed. Her daughter’s grandmother comes from the Philippines. Nevis is now also learning how to play the piano and violin.
 
Supporting other children’s needs

Nelly also draws her inspiration from a charity she supports.
 
“The last couple of years I became an ambassador for Feed the Children, which is a group that builds schools all around the world, and my involvement with them has inspired me a lot,” she said.
 
One of the children featured in her music video was a beneficiary of the organization, she added.
 
“His name is Spencer West and he actually lost his legs when he was four-years-old and he just finished climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro in Kenya with only his hands. And so we did a music video about Spencer West and set it to the music of ‘Spirit Indestructible.’” – With Yugel Losarata